The media has reported on the recent rush by various countries to gain access to more territory in the arctic. Yet they fall short of discussing what is at stake for the earth if companies start extracting resources or using the region as a shipping lane. In this program with the help of guests in Moscow, Alaska, and New York, we look at just what is going on, why, and how are communities being effected.
James Cochran in New York; Doherty Senior Research Scientist, Lamont Doherty Earth Observatory, Columbia University.
Pamela Bumsted in Bethel, Alaska; Researcher, Scientist, and blogger.
Olaf Koens in Moscow; journalist and blogger.
Topics covered during the program:
– Why now?
– What lies beneath?
– Territorial claims
– New Shipping lanes
– Rising sea levels
– Effects on communities in and around the region
– Effects on the globe
– Russian political and scientific goals
– Public perception
– Media coverage of the issue